By Elizabeth Hsing-Huei Chou, EGP Staff Writer
The Montebello Unified School District launched a campaign against bullying by holding assemblies at its high schools this week. The events are part of an educational effort to teach not only staff and teachers, but also students about how to identify and prevent bullying from happening.
A committee has been set up at each of the district’s 28 campuses to deal with bullying. While the district’s bullying problem is lower than the national average, according to a district survey, they are taking a proactive approach, says Assistant Superintendent of Pupils Services Mike Cobarrubias.
The district will take a “zero tolerance” approach to bullying. “Whatever bullying that takes place, we’ll address it,” he says. Appropriate action will be taken depending on the level of bullying that happens.
Bullying has become more widespread because of cell phones and the Internet, resulting in what is called “cyber-bullying,” according to Cobarrubias. And recent events, in which students across the country have committed suicide due to bullying that targeted their perceived sexual orientation, have brought the issue to the fore.
Cobarrubias says bullying often happens when a student is being picked on or isolated because of perceived “differences.” Bullying could take the form of rumors and exclusion, as well as physical violence.
The school site committees on bullying are trained in the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, developed in Norway by psychology professor Dr. Dan Olweus. The program is proven to have positive outcomes in schools, Cobarrubias said.
“Anti-Bullying Rules” posted on signs at each school remind students they should not bully others, that they should help students who are being bullied, include others who are being left out, and tell an adult if they know someone is being bullied.
The district’s anti-bullying efforts also include parent meetings and ongoing classroom lessons.
The assemblies held at Bell Gardens, Montebello, and Schurr high schools featured a screening of “Teen Truth Live: Bullying & School Violence,” a movie that highlighted the Columbine school shooting, which is thought to have happened when students who were bullied took revenge on their classmates.
Funding for this program comes from Safe Schools/Healthy Students, a four-year $8.8 million federal grant that the district received in 2008.